YaHooka Forums - Spiritual Smoke http://www.yahooka.com/forum/ A haven for those interested in exploring and discussing the realities and mysteries of the universe. Discussions cover the philosophical, the deeply religious, the purely scientific, and everything in between. en Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:08:03 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.yahooka.com/forum/images/ca_evo2_green/misc/rss.jpg YaHooka Forums - Spiritual Smoke http://www.yahooka.com/forum/ Psilocyban is a Gift http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153156-psilocyban-gift.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:13:12 GMT Well I was thinking about how they prescribe dieing people to psilocybin to help them deal with the insecurities of death. I was thinking about how beautiful psilocybin is and how most people view death as so scary, and how it is just the end of a life.

Anyone who has taken a large dose of Psilocybin mushrooms knows that the experience feels like what a person would consider a near-death experience. Or the maybe even the death experience. Don't believe me? Eat some until you feel full, or feel like regurgitating.

Teleporting to a world where the body is either not visible, or not important. A world were you are no longer; but unity amongst all things is the only truth. A type of existence through the soul one might deduce. Does psilocybin allow awareness through the soul, by a means of understanding connectivity with the universe and a user's place in it?

A plane of existence where eye's closed brings religious and spiritual imagery, reflected through perfect mathematical symmetry. Where fractal visions are infinite, and repeated through patterns. Alien, yet, so familiar. Where things such as time are just a toy, for which perspective is to play with.

A user may experience time slowing down. Is the brain on over-drive, or is time an imaginary thing man-kind instantiated in an attempt to better understand this universe? Or is psilocybin really smart enough to slow down time for the evil drug ingester to enjoy it's inherent dark properties for seemingly longer period of time?(lol yaaaa right)

Psilocybin tolerance is very easily gained. Is it by coincidence, or does this substance have an anti-abuse mechanism built into it? Was this organism created as a tool for human beings to revert back to a zen understanding of the human experience?

Or is it a freak accident of nature through evolution? I argue that there is no evolutionary purpose of psilocybin presence in fungi. It may ward off some animals, even so, there are more insects that are immune to it's effects that find psilocybin mushrooms a delicasy and a home(Slugs especially).

Not to mention psilocyban is present in the mycellium(the "roots" of the mushroom), which are unexposed to animals. In fact some mushrooms have "stones", or formations within the mycellial network. These stones form beneath the ground and are fairly potent in psilocybin. Certainly that which lives under the ground is not used to ward off deer from having a quick snack.

Psilocybin mushrooms can be grown on newspaper, on dried plant material(even cannabis). They decompose the dead, and turn it into life, leaving the soils rich again for other life forms to use healthily. Some mushrooms can even decompose oil spills into simple sugars. If that isn't a metaphor, what is? No surprise in this being an effective treatment for those fearing death.

So what are psilocybin mushrooms for?
Us.

Quick little thing I wrote. I know I'm preaching to the choir here in a lot of cases. But I really would like to make things a little more clear for some of us who are a little confused.

/Wow I suck at spelling. ]]> Spiritual Smoke Mydriasis http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153156-psilocyban-gift.html The real 2012- a new beginning http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153140-real-2012-new-beginning.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:49:08 GMT Despite Hollywood hype, believers in Mayan cycle say 2012 is not the end of the world | Oregon Living - - Oregonlive.com

Maxson, who's spoken to a few groups interested in 2012, patiently explains the myriad details of the Mayan long calendar. He admires their astronomical knowledge and mathematical skill. He marvels that a culture that thrived between A.D. 300 and A.D. 900 saw itself in the midst of a time cycle that began in 3114 B.C., would end in A.D. 2012 and then -- as cycles do -- begin again.

"It's not the end of the world," Maxson says, "it's the end of a cycle."

He agrees with John Major Jenkins, a Colorado writer who's published 10 books about the Mayans. Jenkins argues that the significance of 2012 rests on a galactic alignment, in which the sun and Earth will line up with the center of the Milky Way. As the alignment approaches, Maxson expects life on Earth to be unsettled for a while.

"Personally, I believe in a shift," Maxson says, "that we'll become less materialistic and more spiritual. I believe in the balance of yin and yang and this is a balancing -- on a huge, huge scale."

Anyone else agree? I do. ]]> Spiritual Smoke Waves http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153140-real-2012-new-beginning.html The many lives of the working man/now the tired lazy man? http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153130-many-lives-working-man-now-tired-lazy-man.html Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:16:47 GMT After reading a book at the cottage about some men who had driven in their sleigh by horse in a raging snowstorm about 100 miles in order to get flour and other essentials for means of survival. I think I realised why todays working man/woman/youth are so lazy. I say this because I hear countless stories from people i know about people they work with, and also people I know that are lazy asses as well. People who would kill for a 30 dollar an hour job now adays and the people that have... After reading a book at the cottage about some men who had driven in their sleigh by horse in a raging snowstorm about 100 miles in order to get flour and other essentials for means of survival. I think I realised why todays working man/woman/youth are so lazy.

I say this because I hear countless stories from people i know about people they work with, and also people I know that are lazy asses as well.

People who would kill for a 30 dollar an hour job now adays and the people that have them barely work because they are calling in sick...getting fake doctors notes....having fake family emergencies etc.

In the "true" story I was reading the men had lost a ski on the sleigh...in order to get back on track they had to cut down a tree and carve out a fresh ski....real hard working men....they had no choice.

Everything today is so convenient, people don't want to work....people are just tired...

Could this be because I believe that we live many lives...I believe that we have worked so hard to make things convenient because we have lived so many lives....and we are just TIRED.

Tired of working....
?

Anyone get what I'm saying? ]]> Spiritual Smoke turmaline http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/153130-many-lives-working-man-now-tired-lazy-man.html Does anyone care? http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152930-does-anyone-care.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:20:47 GMT Hiya 'hookans. Not much activity over here yet, so I thought I'd take a poll. If I do this right the poll should appear at the top of the thread.

I just want to get a feel for this, that's all.

In any case, peace to all.
BG ]]> Spiritual Smoke BibleGuy http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152930-does-anyone-care.html two who knew...rumi and li bai http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152900-two-who-knew-rumi-li-bai.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:39:30 GMT :blsmoke: thought i'd post links to a couple of my favorite poets...
rumi, a sufi poet;
God has given us a dark wine so potent that,
drinking it, we leave the two worlds.

God has put into the form of hashish a power
to deliver the taster from self-consciousness.

Be a conoisseur,
and taste with caution.

Any wine will get you high.
Judge like a king, and choose the purest,

the ones unadulterated with fear,
or some urgency about "what's needed."
Rumi

and li bai, a tang dynasty poet and scholar;
I take my wine jug out among the flowers
to drink alone, without friends.

I raise my cup to entice the moon.
That, and my shadow, makes us three.

But the moon doesn't drink,
and my shadow silently follows.

I will travel with moon and shadow,
happy to the end of spring.

When I sing, the moon dances.
When I dance, my shadow dances, too.

We share life's joys when sober.
Drunk, each goes a separate way.

Constant friends, although we wander,
we'll meet again in the Milky Way.
Li Bai Index
namaste y'all :weed2: ]]> Spiritual Smoke Gben-Chalice http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152900-two-who-knew-rumi-li-bai.html Is Consciousness Drug Induced? http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152794-consciousness-drug-induced.html Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:15:56 GMT Is consciousness alien to the human body? I just got really stoned and had sort of a revelation.

I realized my whole life I've been trying to understand, human culture, human science and language. Isn't that just kind of a curious thought? That which I am a part of I have no understanding. Why is it that the things we so innately understand the things we cannot bury during moments of self-reflection are of little relevance to modern society?

Why is it that these innate understandings are shared amongst all other beings in the animal kingdom. The innate understandings I am referring to are: Reproduce, There is something higher, Purposeful life, Love, Eat, Sleep, and Drink. Of course most of these must exist to sustain life.

But why out of all other animals are we so full of such curious desire? Why does it feel like such a sudden change of thought going from when you feel most animalistic(drugs, starvation, fight or flight reactions, sex, etc).

Is it possible that consciousness is alien to the body? It seems to all dwell out of curiousity. The only things I can think about that would make a creature this curious would be psychedelics.

I've watched my cat enjoy my catnip plant from time to time, and she immediately acquires the mannerisms I would imagine a primitive person would. My cat dances around the plant after ingestion. Jumping rolling, catching imaginary bugs. Worshipping the thing that gives it curiosity.

Perhaps this same kitten tradition is one of ours. Looking into shamans, medicine men, and healers of all kind, this is not a far fetched idea. Perhaps through evolution, hallucination is what gave us to more access of our minds?

Maybe though the alieness of consciousness has nothing to do with hallucinogenic substances. Though I think it greatly does. An increased ability to wonder, and be mystified at the very blandest of life when you are trapped living through the senses.


Sorry I am really high and just kept writing. ]]> Spiritual Smoke Mydriasis http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152794-consciousness-drug-induced.html The Truth http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152787-truth.html Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:06:39 GMT There comes a day when you must choose whom you will serve, and this day is it. The only choice is to be the Christ or to not be the Christ, and you are making that choice every moment of every day.

So therefore I now say, "Choose to be!"

Truth only requires that you give your all to truth .....all of your human self, all of your ego, all of your false sense of identity concerning who you think you are. That is all truth requires. And when you realize that if you give your all to truth, truth will give all to you, then it suddenly is not such a big requirement.

There is only one truth.!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! ]]> Spiritual Smoke 420smokeman http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152787-truth.html <![CDATA[Why I am not a "Tibetan Buddhist" (anymore)]]> http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152766-why-i-am-not-tibetan-buddhist-anymore.html Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:13:08 GMT Tuesday November 3, 2009
by Greg Zwahlen

If you've received meditation instruction at a Shambhala center, or at an Insight Meditation Center, a zendo, or the ID project, the very first thing you probably learned was that it is possible to look directly into your own experience, using your breath to stabilize your attention somewhat and as a jumping off point. This technique is endorsed by Śākyamuni Buddha himself, right there in the Satipatthana Sutta (Sanskrit: Smṛtyupasthāna Sūtra), so it has to be just basic, foundational Buddhism, right?

Well, yes . . . and no. Perhaps it should be, but it isn't always. As scholar Leah Zahler explains in Study and Practice of Meditation: Tibetan Interpretations of the Concentrations and Formless Absorptions, all Tibetan traditions practice śamatha using the breath as a means of settling the mind. But in the largest tradition, the Gelukpa, it was viewed as a mere precursor to the real work of analytic reasoning, and the profound potential of the practice itself was not recognized. In other traditions--particularly the Kagyu and Nyingma--the profundity of the practice was recognized, but the practice itself was sort of "kicked upstairs" by both. It was taught in the context of Mahāmudrā and Dzogchen Semde (respectively), and as such it was often accessible only after one had completed hundreds of thousands of repetitions of ritual practices and committed to a personal guru.

Recently I came across a passage in one of Stephen Batchelor's earlier books, The Faith to Doubt, in which he described his personal experience of this state of affairs. Batchelor was a monk for a number of years in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition in India. He writes:

. . , the institute in which I was studying hosted an insight meditation (vipassana) retreat led by U Goenka, the well-known Indian teacher from the Burmese tradition of U Ba Khin. The method of meditation taught by Goenka is a highly effective technique of developing concentrated mindfulness of body-sensations and feelings, viewed in their aspects of being impermanent, unsatisfactory, and selfless. This retreat had an overwhelming impact on me. Within the short period of ten days my consciousness was unquestionably altered, and I gained direct experiential insights into the meaning of the Buddhist teachings unlike anything I had ever realized through the methods taught by my Tibetan teachers.


This experience made me question some of the basic claims of the Tibetan lamas. The Tibetans maintain that their tradition alone preserves all the teachings of Buddhism: Hinayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. . . [However, the] systematic practice of mindfulness was not preserved in the Tibetan traditions. The Gelugpa lamas know about such methods and can point to long descriptions of mindfulness in their Abhidharma works, but the living application of the practice has largely been lost. (Only in dzog-chen, with the idea of "awareness" [rig pa] do we find something similar.) For many Tibetans the very term "mindfulness" (sati in Pali, rendered in Tibetan by dran pa) has come to be understood almost exclusively as "memory" or "recollection."

. . . What I was looking for was a practice of formless meditation and a place to train over an extended period of time. But at that time I could not find a teacher within any of the Tibetan traditions who taught such a practice without the embellishments of guru-devotion, tantric ritual, mantra, visualization, and so on for which I felt little affinity. The Tibetan argument that such practices were necessary as a basis for proceeding into the formless meditations of mahamudra or dzogchen were unconvincing. I only had to look at the Theravada or Zen systems to see that a formless meditation was quite happily practiced without that basis. By this time I found it quite impossible to accept the Tibetans' critique of the other traditions and their own claims to superiority. The lamas persisted in refuting only antiquated notions of the other Buddhist traditions- notions which had been preserved in Tibet for centuries-but had little understanding of the current condition of the schools they were criticizing (pgs 8, 13).

Chogyam Trungpa, the late Tibetan Buddhist master, recognized this problem, and for this reason he introduced the profundity of the "direct experience" approach to the very beginning of his path. It is given pride of place as the cornerstone of practice in Shambhala centers today. This departure from the Tibetan Buddhist norm was one of his most valuable contributions, in my opinion. Although it was radical in the Tibetan context, to me it seems clear that it was a longer overdue return to the core instructions of the Buddha. A number of younger Kagyu and Nyingma lamas--Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, Traleg Rinpoche, Mingyur Rinpoche, and Tsokyni Rinpoche, to name a few--have since followed his example in this regard.

I consider myself a practitioner in the Indo-Tibetan tradition in which I've been trained by Tibet lamas and their close disciples. I've put in a great deal of study and practice in that tradition over the last eight years. But over the last couple of years or so I've undergone a subtle realignment in my approach to and understanding of Buddhadharma, based on the realization that "Tibetan Buddhism" is not quite as all-encompassing of the Indian Buddhist tradition as it believes itself to be. I have a new appreciation for the Theravāda tradition and the value to all Buddhists of the common Buddhist heritage that it has carefully preserved.

Today, many of us are in the enviable position of being able to access nearly the full range of Buddhist teachings that have been preserved. Some people worry that this opens the door to a sort of promiscuous "mixing" of distinct lineages into an ill-advised mess. To some degree this concern is well-founded. But it should be remembered that in India there was an enormous amount of diversity of thought and practice which often mingled in the same monasteries--Śrāvakas of various views, Yogācārins, Mādhyamikas. To some extent the perceived separation of the various Buddhist traditions today is based more on geography and culture than on any fundamental incompatibility. There are real differences, to be sure, but those differences don't necessarily all break down cleanly along recognizable "lineage" lines. The contemporary rapprochement can potentially benefit all Buddhists. We also have the modern disciplines of academia at our disposal, and they are of immense potential benefit to this great sorting out process.

Sangharakshita has been a pioneer in conceiving and implementing this approach, and I admire his work in this area. An Englishman, the founder of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order, he calls it "back to basics"--an effort "to clarify what all Buddhist schools held in common: the essential principles and practices that run through the whole tradition." I have no experience of his organization, but I've read a number of his books, and they are a very rigorous effort to do just that. I highly recommend them.

This is also the approach Ethan tends to take at the ID project. We've talked about it a great deal over the years, and I think the results speak for themselves.

So the glib answer to the question of why I'm not a "Tibetan Buddhist" is because I am, of course, not a Tibetan. But even the glib response makes a point that, unfortunately, seems to be often overlooked as the various Buddhist traditions are transmitted to the west--we are not living in premodern societies, and (despite how mind-bogglingly extensive the Tibetan tradition is) our opportunities for study and practice are in some respects more vast than those of pre-1959 Tibet. Our practice of dharma can benefit by reflecting this reality. Thankfully, as more and more people become accomplished, this will happen to a greater and greater degree.

I don't think there are coincidences. Today I got an email from a friend with this writing. I'm pretty much in the middle of a book by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, which talks a lot about no religion owning a sole Truth and how to apply spiritual philosophy, which he calls Shambala, a secular approach to Buddhist teachings.

So I just wanted to share this as I found it interestingly good timing, perhaps that could also mean that is the only reason why the words mean anything to me.

But enjoy it anyway.

Metta,
SageTree ]]> Spiritual Smoke SageTree http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152766-why-i-am-not-tibetan-buddhist-anymore.html The Starfish http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152762-starfish.html Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:57:06 GMT Once upon a time, there was a wise kupuna (elder),
who went to the sea to contemplate.
One day, while walking along the shore,
the kupuna looked down the beach,
and saw a gracefully dancing
human figure.

The kupuna wondered out loud,
"Who would so joyfully greet this day with hula?"
and began to walk faster to catch up.

Getting closer,
the kupuna saw that the dancer was a keiki (child),
who was not dancing at all.
The keiki was reaching down to the sand to pick up something,
and was very gently throwing it into the sea.

The kupuna called out to the keiki,
"Aloha! What are you doing?"

The keiki paused, looked up and replied,
"Throwing starfish into the sea."

Surprised, the kupuna sputtered,
"I...I guess I should have asked,
WHY are you throwing starfish into the sea?"

The keiki smiled brightly, pointed upward and,
with exquisite simplicity, replied,
"The sun is up, the tide is going out.
If I don't throw them in, they will die."

"But, don't you realize, " asked the kupuna,
"that there are miles and miles of beach
and starfish all along it?
You can't possibly make a difference!"

The keiki listened politely.
Then bent down, picked up another starfish,
threw it gently into the sea, just beyond the breaking waves,
and exuberantly declared,
"It made a difference for that one." ]]> Spiritual Smoke http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152762-starfish.html stolen from sage: a buddhist perspective http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152734-stolen-sage-buddhist-perspective.html Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:54:14 GMT I guess I would have to say that for me Buddhist teachings are what centres me, because it helps me see a logical path for mindfulness. The 'faith' part of Buddhism is just that the teachings are helpful. Buddha himself said, take what is genuinely useful and discard the rest. So when I kneel and bow to my alter, it's not blind hope of salvation, it's honouring a time and space where I can look within and find answers, The Buddha is just the representation of the universal concept of taking time to look with in.


The Buddha is interesting to me since the methods discussed, when practiced, have really helped me learn how to shed light on my own situations.

The concept I appreciate along with Bodhisattva mind, are the teachings of impermanence, about how ALL things rise and fall rise and fall, just like my abdomen when I meditate, just like my feet on the ground and just like unbeneficial thoughts rising, considered, fall.

The arousal is a sign of emotion, but isn't the means in which such concerns need to be expressed.

Emotions happen, actions are chosen.

The more I practice 'right thought and intention', the easier new neural pathways are formed, so choosing becomes less effortless over time. This I feel is part of the larger picture of being like the bamboo, my favourite metaphor for liberated mind, Learning how to bend without breaking, in large and small ways in our everyday lives.

I feel that Buddhist practice, has helped me find that core meaning of the faith I was raised in, and also to understand the interconnected ideals in lots of others. So being a Buddhist to me doesn't mean that I can't read or consider anything else. The 'considering' part is what Buddha teaches, not necessarily what to consider, just more like suggestions of how to form analytical exploration. As the Tibetan Book of the Dead focuses on how to remain alert in the Bardo of Death, so does it effect our lives, and learning to recognize what to do with arising when we 'live'.

God is really the only thing not talked about much by Buddha, and that I think is good. God to me is a referencing point for people to look and worship their highest ideals, ideally. People create God in that manner of speaking, which is why it so alarming to think that people worship out of fear. Buddha for me was a face, that helped me feel comfortable, when I approached mindfulness, a teacher I could trust. But to me the face of the teacher represents the cosmic and universal laws in which we live, and where He, touches the Earthbased side of my spirituality. Buddha also touched the Earth on the night of his enlightenment, when Mara, the god of temptation, asked Buddha 'who was his judge?' So his likeness is the proverbial face of goodness I see with in the world, the calm presence and the smile of knowing, turned slightly in the corners. Many Buddhist festivals and celebrations in India culture are based around the moon as well. A remnant of Earthbased roots, no doubt, original paganism. Buddhism is just the philosophy of that.

My wife has took her vows as a pagan and when we got together we both found our paths knitted together well.

So I suppose that doesn't really answer, how I stay light hearted, but it is encompassed in those things I said. Working to be honest and accepting of things, lets out my true intentions to love and comfort people. And that doesn't mean that you have to be stuffy and stoic. Think Dalai Lama, or the beaming smile or so many Teachers of the Dharma.

What I fear is that Westerns will try to do to the East what has been done to the Western religions. And that is keep the 'knowledge' and not share it. Making it spiritual property, which is a bit of what you touched on, with 'headier that thou'.

Interconnectedness should make it abundantly aware to people that Kindness is the ONLY way to treat people.

"If you can't help someone, at least try to do them no harm"

So thanks for reading that, I just had some thoughts to share, which is why I was suprised and commented on how you end conversations now and again.

My ego went , damn, I really have a lot more to share. So I hope you enjoyed reading that, if nothing beyond understanding me, was taken from it.

I really like to talk existential ideas, so this is also some of my geek showing, as I really like to share with people who I have found meaning and happiness in my life, as well.

So if you have any questions or things to say about what I share, feel free to do the same. Sharing with others what we believe can also help us cognize a bit as well, so thanks for being an ear for that as well.







thanks sage! ]]> Spiritual Smoke kitch http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152734-stolen-sage-buddhist-perspective.html The Bible and Cannabis http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152727-bible-cannabis.html Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:24:21 GMT BibleGuy and I were PM-img about the possibility of cannabis use in the Bible. He referred me to a wikipedia reference that was pretty interesting and opened up a good area of discussion that I wanted to invite you all in on. The link to the reference is Religious and spiritual use of cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_and_spiritual_use_of_cannabis) scroll down to the Ancient Hebraic use Generally, I have done to much serious... BibleGuy and I were PM-img about the possibility of cannabis use in the Bible. He referred me to a wikipedia reference that was pretty interesting and opened up a good area of discussion that I wanted to invite you all in on. The link to the reference is

Religious and spiritual use of cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia scroll down to the Ancient Hebraic use

Generally, I have done to much serious Biblical research to take Wiki as a serious source. Sorry to all of you Wiki lovers out there. It's great for a quick-and-dirty info check. And don't get me wrong, it does have some interesting material, like the stuff I mention here, but much of the information lacks research veracity IMHO.

Anyway, the reference to marijuana and religious use I think was really interesting.

It first cites Aryeh Kaplan, a Jewish scholar in the 1980's, postulating data to support cannabis as at least part of the holy anointing oil and this oil as an ingredient in holy incense used in tabernacle/temple worship. I am adding a bit here. You can follow the link to his page and get more. Main point - this scholar gives evidence that cannabis was the plant called kaneh-bosem in the ancient Hebrew Biblical Old Testament manuscripts.

More interestingly, the wiki reference goes on to mention Sula Benet who seems to imply something else at least possible and fascinating. She suggests that the Septuagint (this was the Old Testament translated into Greek - done around 500 to 300 before Christ) mistranslated the Hebrew word kaneh-bosem (either in error or not) to calamus in Greek (also a smelly herb in that part of the world, but an entirely different plant). This mistranslation from potentially "cannabis" (it might be cannabis, Kaplan thinks so) to "calamus" continued on in future Greek translations and future translations of the Old Testament from the Greek (our King James English translation used this as a secondary source).

Most fascinating to me is Benet seems to suggest that these Hebrew editors then went back and edited older Hebrew texts of the Old Testament to reflect this change![/U] They changed the original writing from kaneh-bosem to calamus. Keep in mind, our modern translations (English for most of those reading this) come from these ancient Hebrew manuscripts so if the change were made it would be reflected in our Bible today.

Summarizing, our current Biblical Old Testament (English translations or others) are based primarily upon the Hebrew manuscripts existent at the time of the translation. Benet's work suggests the original unedited writing of the Old Testament mentions sacred use of the plant kaneh-bosem in anointing oils and possibly incense. Kaplan's work suggests this plant is cannabis.

If true - and I doubt it - this would be astounding! ]]> Spiritual Smoke MannyBoy http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152727-bible-cannabis.html <![CDATA[Mushrooms and "Beserker Rage", Exhibit A: Cerpin Taxt]]> http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152724-mushrooms-beserker-rage-exhibit-cerpin-taxt.html Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:29:31 GMT
http://infao5501.ag5.mpi-sb.mpg.de:8...6201.xml&style
Quote:
S. Odman first suggested in 1784 that Nordic Vikings used fly-agaric ( Amanita muscaria ) to produce their berserker rages. Supposedly, the Norse took these mushrooms so that the effect came on during the heat of battle or while at work. During the berserker rage they performed deeds which otherwise would have been impossible. The rage started with shivering, chattering of the teeth and a chill. Their faces became swollen and changed color. A great rage developed in which they howled like wild animals and violently killed anyone in their way, friend or foe alike. Afterward their mind became dulled and feeble for several days. The potency of North-American fly agarics has been confirmed by Siberian shamans, but the methodology of effective use has eluded modern experimenters.
I believe it 100%, because I experienced it... to make a long story (and a very long night) short. It happened a year ago, and to this day it is among the most profound moments of my life.

I had drank 3.5 grams in tea and had underestimated my ability to control myself; my mind and the situation itself were just not right for tripping.

After having my sensibilities stripped from my consciousness long ago, I decided to venture into the basement where my two female roomates had their rooms. My buddies and I never really talked to them that much, but we kept things civil. That being said, me going down there in the state I was was probably not the least awkward moment of their lives. I had become extremely paranoid and wary, but also felt a fire building inside of me that was growing stronger by the second. As cheesy as it sounds I can only compare the feeling to being Bruce Banner knowing that he can change into the Hulk. I felt like my clothes were suffocating, so I stripped down to my boxers and stood up. I'm assuming the girls didn't know what to do or say because they let me do so without doing anything.

I then felt that chill described above and all my muscles gradually tensing up. I felt this surge of power and strength start coursing through me and it was only getting stronger. I could feel the blood rushing to my head and my muscles started feeling like then were going to pop out of my skin. The pressure in my head became so strong that I started growling, and that grew to a yell. This yell then finally became a deafening scream that I did not think humanly possible, let alone a sound I could produce. The power I felt in that moment was incredible, and it was a release like nothing I've ever felt before. After letting out the blood curdling howl, I settled (to an extent) and just wanted to smash something. I then heard feet coming down the stairs and my paranoia kicked in.

"They're coming to get me. I know it. They know what I'm doing down here and they're trying to stop me."

A sense of panic, as the only way out of the basement is up the stairs I came down. The footsteps are getting closer. I'm going to have to fight my way out of here.

In one series of motions, I run up the stairs and meet a friend of mine half way. Before he can even say anything, I punch him in the face while still heading up the stairs. A second friend who was further up the stairs sees this and says "Woah what the fuck?!" and backs off as I run by. I run into a third friend who's in the hallway and, with a shocked/scared look in his eyes he says "What the hell are you doing man?" It wasn't what he said, but the look in his eyes, that snapped me out of my mindless rush to freedom. Some sense was returned to me, and I appologized for not being able to handle my state, saying "It's my first time" and "I don't know how to handle it yet." Not exactly thinking what I said made a lot of sense, my buddy just stared at me. The friend of mine I punched had his mouth split open and needed to get stitches. It was 3am.

They later said they came downstairs (they were two floors up) because they heard a 'savage scream' that sounded like someone was being murdered.

It's a night that's now somewhat taboo in my circle.



The reason I'm posting this story in the spiritual smoke forum because I feel I bared witness to an unlocked power that we surely all possess. What I am asking is: Do you believe that this was a glimpse at the true physical capabilities of the human body?... The physical equivalent to the opening of the Third Eye? Or simply a short circuit in the brains functioning?

EDIT: Viking Answer Lady Webpage - Berserkergang

Interesting stuff... ]]> Spiritual Smoke Cerpin Taxt http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152724-mushrooms-beserker-rage-exhibit-cerpin-taxt.html Not quite www.belief.org http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152712-not-quite-www-belief-org.html Sun, 01 Nov 2009 23:36:38 GMT Image: http://cdn.holytaco.com/www/sites/default/files/images/2009/10/Religion-Flowchart_1.jpg ]]> Spiritual Smoke Hedons http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152712-not-quite-www-belief-org.html <![CDATA[Universe's quantum 'speed bumps' no obstacle for light]]> http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152693-universes-quantum-speed-bumps-no-obstacle-light.html Sat, 31 Oct 2009 23:33:57 GMT Universe's quantum 'speed bumps' no obstacle for light

-Hedons ]]> Spiritual Smoke Hedons http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152693-universes-quantum-speed-bumps-no-obstacle-light.html Zen Crisis :( http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152671-zen-crisis.html Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:05:23 GMT Throughout my life I've seen/experienced a decent amount of tragedy and chaos. I watched my grandma die of lung cancer when I was 4-6, my dad was an alcoholic who couldnt keep a job, I was nerdy and fat as a kid so I got picked on a lot, several friends that I grew up with died, I got raided by the dea when I was 17 which fucked up my family financially, my dad died two years after that, I got hooked on opiates from 17-22, my girlfriend almost died towards the end of my addiction etc.
On top of that shit I've been dealing with mental illness and severe insomnia/anxiety for most of my life (most notably since I was 16).

I got interested in Zen and meditation when I was about 16 and since then have expanded my spiritual curiosity to everything from pantheism to judeo-christianity etc. Other things like quantum mechanics, jungian/freudian psychology etc. have influenced me as well.

I've found that recently when bad things happen (i.e. A friend go's to the hospital, someone dies, I misplace a large amount of money) I don't really care too much. I left an apartment full of my possessions in LA a few months back and dont trip too much about the shit I dont have anymore.

In so many ways I am happier than I've ever been...Or I guess a better word for it would be that I'm more at peace with life than I've ever been. I'm still very anxious and get quite depressed/angry sometimes. But compared to how I was 10 years ago, I feel much better.

Now here's the problem. Recently my friends and girlfriend seem to be kind of upset with me. They all say I dont really care about whats going on and it seems like some of them are just about fed up. When something breaks, or something go's wrong I just kind of laugh, because it's all very comical to me. I dont take very many things seriously.

Things like money and sex just dont mean much to me anymore. I feel that I've accidentally slipped into the whole zen mentality. I've disconnected from my need for acception, love, money, sex etc. and it's hard to make myself want any of them.

On one hand I may lose everyone I care about, but I'm afraid that trying to reverse this will bring me back into a place where all I care about is materials, money, sex, human acception etc. And I know I wasnt happy like this.

What is your input on this? It's really starting to bubble up to the surface now, affecting my life and whatnot. Is there such thing as being too centered? Is it more valuable to have people and not have mental/spiritual peace, or to lose everyone and be content?

Thanks dudes. ]]> Spiritual Smoke scottishbastard http://www.yahooka.com/forum/spiritual-smoke/152671-zen-crisis.html